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Madeline at the White House
'''Madeline at the White House '''is a book written and illustrated by John Bemelmans Marciano. Plot In a brief prologue, the Girls are seen departing the Paris school in a taxi. Madeline is waving goodbye to her magician friend Mustapha who looks very sad to see her leave. The Girls all have suitcases, indicating they are going on a trip somewhere far away. The story starts at the White House in Washington DC. A little girl named Penelope Randall (nicknamed Candle for her uniquely curled hair) is introduce. Her Father is the President of the United States and is far too busy to spend any time with her. She is taught individually by a tutor with no other classmates. Her personal secret service officer Agent Downs doesn't allow her to leave the White House grounds. As a result, she's quite lonely. One day in April Candle receives a letter from her Mother. As First Lady she is on a diplomatic assignment to Bombay, India and will miss Easter at the White House. However, one of her close friends has a daughter who attends the boarding school in Paris and she has arranged for the class to visit for Easter. Candle is very excited and prepares for their arrival at 9:30 in the morning. The class arrives at the White House. The other Girls are very shy to be meeting the daughter of the most powerful man in the free world. However, Madeline goes right up and boldly introduces herself to Candle making her feel very valued. The class then files into the guest room to unpack. Madeline opens her suitcase and is surprised to discover a very familiar rabbit wearing a fez hat. She recognizes him to be Mustapha in disguise. The Girls are quite happy their magician friend could stow away for the trip. Candle takes the Girls to her room to play and they have a fun time playing with all her toys. Eventually Ms. Clavel calls the Girls to get ready for bed. The next day the group takes part in the White House Easter Celebration, the most fun festival in the nation! Everyone has a great time. Among the festivities the Girls search for eggs and then race them. Throughout the day they stuff themselves with sweet food. They regret it later that night as everyone goes to sleep with a stomach ache. Madeline asks Ms. Clavel if she can sleep in Candle's room. Ms. Clavel consents as she too is in distress from all the sweets. She tells Madeline to go to bed soon as they will be leaving first thing in the morning. Throughout the night Madeline, Candle and Mustapha have a lot of fun. The Girls dress Mustapha up (much to his chagrin), beat him in cards (much to his frustration), dance to music and tell scary stories (which Madeline is the best at). Then the clock chimes an hour that is close to dawn. Candle becomes despondent that Madeline will be leaving soon. She cries as she wishes she could leave the White House and see the City. Madeline comforts her as Mustapha thinks about what he can do to help. Mustapha raises his arms and chants "Abracadabra!" to summon his magic. The window flies open and a gust of wind blows a tide of enchanted cherry blossoms into the room. They form a magic carpet, scooping up a very surprised Madeline and Candle. Mustapha uses the carpet to fly the Girls into the sky, high above the City. Madeline quickly acclimates to the adventure while Candle is still scared to be flying. However, as they pass some of the incredible landmarks of Washington, she becomes overjoyed to be out seeing the world. The Girls fly from the White House to see the Lincoln Memorial, the Capitol, the Jefferson Memorial and the Washington Monument. The sky brightens as the morning dawns. The Girls stay out as long as they can before flying back to the White House, knowing they must return before Ms. Clavel realizes they're gone and Mustapha's magic is discovered. At the White House Ms. Clavel knocks on the door to Candle's room to get Madeline ready to leave. No one answers. She becomes worried that something is wrong. Agent Downs comes by. He's concerned too and breaks the door open with his shoulder. The two caretakers are relieved to see their girls sleeping soundly (no worse for their nightly adventure). Ms. Clavel rouses Madeline and tell her it's time to leave. Madeline and Candle wink at each other, electing to keep their (possible dream) flight a secret. Unseen to everyone, a trail of cherry blossoms leads from the window to the bed. Ms. Clavel, the Girls and Madeline all say goodbye to Candle at the White House Gates. Before leaving America, the class visits the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington to pay their respects to national heroes. They then all fly home to Paris (since Mustapha doesn't have a ticket, he flies home on a magic carpet). That night Ms. Clavel checks on the Girls as they sleep, happy to have such a rewarding position of being their teacher. Amusing Details * Madeline at the White House was originally envisioned by Ludwig Bemelmans in coordination with first lady Jacquelin Kennedy as Madeline Visits Caroline in the early 1960s. Unfortunately he passed away in 1962 before he could begin the book. His grandson John Bemelmans Marciano paid tribute to his works by making this book. * This is the first and only time since the original book where the story ends with, "And that's all there is, there isn't anymore." * This is Mustapha's second appearance after Madeline's Christmas. * This is the second time in the books where the Girls visit the United States. * Candle is based largely on Caroline Kennedy, daughter of John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States who served from 1961 to 1963. * Sheep are seen tilling the White House Lawn during the Easter Celebration, as they did during World War 1 when many American groundskeepers were deployed to Europe. * Though not directly seen himself, one of President Randall's advisors looks strikingly similar to Richard Nixon. Like Kennedy, Nixon was a powerful American statesman in the mid-twentieth century who lost against Kennedy in the 1960 Election. He would go on to be the 37th President of the United States. Category:Books